EMG ZW Zakk Wylde Signature Humbucker Guitar Pickup Set, Black

Just received these pickups from amazon last week, and have to say, if you have ever contemplated changing pups and doing it yourself, definately give these a go. Installation was simple, and I had never done this type of thing before. I have to say EMG have put a lot of thought into this set. the installation has been carefully thought out and the instructions are elegant with all the diagrams you should need. NO arcane pictures speckled with geek speak, just clear concise instructions. The pickups themselves are beautiful, especially great for chuggy metal sounds, but when you dial em in right they are very versatile and clean. If you are used to the usual crap passive's that come with most guitars nowadays, these will open up all those sonic possibilities you have been wanting for a long time. For me they are exactly what i wanted, and though they are great for metal and jazzy type of playing, they may be a little crisp for some peoples liking. The reason i say crisp is because they lack that muddy sloppy sound that a lot of pickups seem to favour nowadays, so if you like a muddy sound then maybe these aren't for you, on the other hand though they are incredibly versatile, and at $200 they are more than worth the price of admission. To put things in a pricing perspective, here in Australia these babies tend to clock in at around the $400 mark or close enough. Add to that paying someone to install you can get quoted some insane prices over here (i was quoted anywhere from $600 to $1000). So if you are from Australia and are wanting some EMG's, do yourself a favour, order them from Amazon and do it yourself. The Solderless installation is brain dead easy, almost impossible to got wrong. One note is that i had to resolder my pickup switch, but this was because of my stupidity, this can easily be avoided by cutting the wire further back form the pickup by about 5 centimetres, then all you have to do is strip the end wires and screw them into the bus, nice and simple and solder free. Highly recomended, i love these so much i'm buying another set for another guitar i have coming soon. EMG thank you very much for doing a good job.

Fantastic pickups. The clarity is amazing! I play an Epiphone Les Paul Custom Pro II Silverburst, which came stock with the Probucker 2 pickups. I've owned a Gibson SG standard with 490s. The 490s were hot, while probuckers seem pretty dull. These EMG 81/85 pickups are crisp, clear, and bright. Think of looking out a window with a light grey curtain covering it. You cans till see out the window, but it's not a clear picture outside. Remove the curtain, and you can see directly through the clean glass to the outside world. That's the difference with these pickups. Installation was as simple as could be! Directions are plain and simple! Literally just plug and play. No soldering, at all. My only complaint isn't an EMG problem. It's an Epiphone issue. My 3 way selector switch cable wasn't long enough, nor did it have the proper wiring connections because it was originally a quick connect system. Therefore I DID have to order an EMG selector switch!

I Still like my passive pickups, but these are Awesome. Installation was easy, just follow the directions. I will definitely be getting a few more EMG sets. Not just the 81/85.

I have no words, just an amazing sound. I'm used to EMG 81 85, but this is definitely something different. I highly recommend the seller. This is the fastest delivery I've had on Amazon

I have always used and loved EMG pick ups since I got my first on back in 1985. I have used them in two Washburn guitars, my BC Rich Mockingbird, and now the "BRS" a guitar I built for the Great Guitar Build Off 2021" competition hosted by Crimson Guitars. This is the "BRS" using the Zakk Wylde EMG 81/85 set. I love the sound and versatility even though these seem to have deeper tones then the earlier EMG's I have used. Over all they still sound awesome. Makes sense for the style music he plays. For me they sound great over driven or clean which is a trick to do on EMG's as there is a sweet spot to get both using the height adjustments and not just going for most power. The kit that came with it was not so easy as they say as the wire ends are not the easiest to feed thru tiny holes in the body so you should probably drill a tad bigger then normal between cavities. The tone range with the kit tone pots seems very short range but with the style Zakk plays I dont see him using it much anyways as its all programmed in the effects loop same as I do. Support for these only gives standard connections for traditional Gibson's or Fender's and nothing for set ups like blending and such non traditional setups. Over all well worth the money for the complete kit. I wouldn't pay the same price to people selling just the pickups for so look out there.

First time buying active pickups and can't be happier! They were pretty easy to install...especially with a little hp from the tube. I had seymor duncans in my Les Paul and was happy with them but wanted to try EMG.....man I'm glad I did...these things rock! Sustain for days...very focused and with tons of gain they are still super articulate. Been playing my guitar a lot more si ce I added these monsters. Could not be happier with the sound.....for the people who say they lack dynamics.....ahhh noooo! These pickups sing and the 85 in the bridge is not muddy with gain...I never really played the neck pickup that much but with these pickups I have been a lot more. I am a EMG convert....and the cool thing is if I decide on another type of EMG I can install super easy with just one connector...no soldering involved. Couldn't be happier with these awesome pickups.

Why did you pick this product vs others?: Wow! I had these pick ups put into an Ibanez JS3CR, and wow!! this guitar sings! Pitch harmonics jump out easily, clear output. Highly recommend these pick ups. It is like this guitar had an on and off switch and the power has been turned on.

The Zakk Wylde 81/85 set is a great combo. It failed to dawn on me though, that since Zakk plays Les Pauls, that the kit would have long shaft pots in them, and thus the pots themselves were not going to be a good fit with my strat.